The art of being SMART

If you find yourself drifting from project to project, rushing around and actually accomplishing very little, it is probably because you are not being SMART.

Setting SMART goals means you can clarify your ideas and align your effort, whilst using your time and resource effectively.

To make sure your goals are reachable they should be:

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Realistic

Time bound

If you consistently check your goals against SMART they have a much greater chance of being accomplished.

Specific goals must answer the 5 W’s.Who, what, where, when, why. By going back to basics your plan can be fool-proof, and covering every one of them can make your plans instantly more attainable.

When your goals are measurable you can see your progress, stay on track, reach deadlines, and experience the joyfulness of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal.If you want to know if your goal is measurable ask yourself – How much? How long?

By identifying goals and targets that are most essential to you can make them achievable. You will develop the attitudes required so even if it stretches your abilities it will still remain possible. Setting short-term goals that can be reviewed within a specific time frame will allow you to track progress and pick up on blockers earlier on.

Be realistic! Over promising and under delivering is common when you don’t set realistic targets. Only set goals that know you could achieve yourself.

Finally set deadlines and make sure that your project is time bound. If you don’t achieve specific goals by a certain time then you will have little to no motivation to get things done as you will have created a no pressure environment.